Today we’re bringing you a message that our leader and founder, Cari Twitchell, wrote this past week to our current email list of clients, friends and Copy Club community members.
This message connected so strongly that we felt it important to share with our wider community. Read on and please feel free to contact us here via our website or via email at hello at customcontentllc.com if you’d like to speak with us further about anything we’ve written here. Thank you.
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For those of you who aren’t aware, I live in Minnesota, about 20 minutes north of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The murder of George Floyd a week ago Monday sparked an uprising in my home state that has since spread across the nation and is being watched around the world.
To hide our heads in the sand is to be apathetic. To stay silent is to be complicit. I know I’m neither of those things.
I also know I want to help. But how? How can I play a part in this movement? How can I help make a difference? If you’re wondering these things, too, then please continue to read on.
Educate
The best thing to do when you feel like you don’t know how to participate is to simply open your mind and your heart to other perspectives.
- Educate yourself and your loved ones on racial injustice and the #BlackLivesMatter movement.
- Not sure where to start? I came across a document with links to articles, podcasts, organizations to follow and more. Access the Google Doc here.
- As a white person, I also found this article incredibly helpful, as well as this one.
- Additionally, my team and I have all ordered the Kindle version of Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor. We’ll be reading and discussing this together. You can get a copy for yourself here.
- Have hard conversations. Words are powerful. And, sometimes, words are hard. Really hard. But say them and listen to them anyway.
Donate
As of now, Custom Content Solutions is a monthly supporter of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. If you have the ability to do so, join us in donating to a cause that you connect with. Here are several options:
- George Floyd Memorial Fundto cover “funeral and burial expenses, mental and grief counseling, lodging and travel for all court proceedings…” and a “portion of these funds will also go to the Estate of George Floyd for the benefit and care of his children and their educational fund”
- Philando Castile Relief Fund to “provide support, assistance and guidance to those individuals and families affected by gun violence and police violence”
- Minnesota Freedom Fund to help pay bail for the protestors who showed up “in love and grief and rage to demand justice for the murder of George Floyd”
- ACLU of Minnesotato support their work towards racial equity in the courts and legislature
- NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. to support their racial justice across the US
- Lake Street Council to help rebuild Lake Street businesses in Minneapolis
- Neighbors United Funding Collaborative to help rebuild Hamline-Midway businesses in St. Paul
Act
Want to do more? Here are a few options for you:
- Sign this petition if you believe that police reform is necessary.
- Contact your local and state representatives to let them know where you stand. Not sure who they are? Start here.
- Vote, especially in your local and state elections. Learn about your local candidates, as most reform starts at the local and state levels. If you aren’t yet registered to vote, you can register here.
Love
I believe that with love we can come together and make our world a better place. It starts with an open ear, an honest conversation and an outstretched hand.
I encourage you, if nothing else, to approach those around you with empathy and grace.
Thank you for reading this.
In solidarity,
Cari
